Discovering Southwest Treasures without an Agenda

We had no idea or plan for which way we would go.  Jeep and I simply let our thirst to see as much of the Southwest’s natural beauty guide us for six days. The car was packed with snowshoes, extra water, four maps, sleeping bags and a tent (which we never used).  We headed toward Flagstaff for no other reason than to see the trees along I-40.We detoured toward Laughlin for dinner.. because we could and ate in a casino.. because we could. Damn that’s some good people watching!  As the hostess took us to our seat, a waitress carried out two Big Frickin Burgers - a colossal burger that was at least six inches tall. I ordered a stout and Jeep ordered a fruity beer and we split four potato skins.. sans the bacon. I read the menu like it was a sordid Harlequin romance. Our favorite item was the Krispy Kreme burger.. oh yes, a mighty half pounder between two glazed donuts. Ew. It’s rather obvious why Americans are overweight when you look at a casino menu.We got back on the road and an hour later, found a secret sleep spot. The neatest thing about finding a place to sleep on a back road in the middle of the night is waking up to see the treasures of the land under a bright winter morning sun.